1. Field of the Disclosure
The present disclosure is generally directed to child seating devices, and more particularly to a convertible child seat that can be reconfigured between a plurality of different optional seating arrangements.
2. Description of Related Art
Many different types of child seating devices are known in the art. For example, bouncer seats for young infants are known and include a relatively simple bouncer frame. A suspended seat or sling-type seating surface, to which the infant can be secured by a harness, is coupled to the frame. Highchairs are known in the art as a child feeding solution and include a relatively tall frame supporting a child seat. The seat typically has a tray to support food items, dishes, eating implements, and the like. The child can eat directly from the tray or the caregiver can place food and other implements on the tray in order to feed their child. Highchairs can be used for young children, but only after they reach an age where they can sit up and hold their head up on their own. A highchair can be used until the child is big enough to sit at a regular size table with the family and use a booster seat.
For larger children and toddlers, booster seats are also known in the art. A typical booster seat provides an intermediate seating surface to be placed on the seat of a conventional chair. The booster raises the seat bottom height so that the child can sit comfortably and access the top of the table. The child can thus sit at the table and eat from the standard tabletop surface. Booster seats come in many different sizes, constructions, and variations, but are typically for older children.
Many of these types of seating devices are used by parents both in the home and outside the home at restaurants, diners, and the like. The goal for these types of devices is to integrate the child as soon as possible in an affective manner with the rest of the family during meals. These conventional devices require parents to obtain and store several different products to accommodate a single child as the child grows from a young infant stage to the toddler stage and beyond.
Safety is a concern when it comes to the design and use of these types of seating devices. Many such products come with built-in seat belts, safety harnesses, and the like for restraining the infant or child in the seat of the device. A number of these devices also come with other safety features that assist in securing the seating device to another object, such as the chair or table. Some families utilize a conventional bouncer seat or an infant carrier placed directly on a tabletop surface for feeding their very young child or for integrating their infant into the family dynamic during meals, even if the infant is not being fed. Placing a bouncer or carrier directly on the tabletop is not particularly safe, as a conventional bouncer and carrier have no means of securing the seating device to the table.
A number of companies have produced and sold seats for toddlers that can hook or attach onto another object, such as an edge of a table. These types of products include the “Caddy/Explorer” by Chicco, the “Feeding Friend (Dog)” by Munchkins, the “Rubino/Limone” by Inglesina, the “Travel Lite” by Graco, the “Hook on Chair” by Regalo, the “Me Too Hook on Chair” by Phil and Ted, and the “Hook on Chair” by Zooper. A number of these products include safety restraint and harness systems, table attachment systems, a seat providing a feeding position for the child, and a tray placed in front of the seat. The Chicco product has a locked upright seat position, a three-point harness system, and a double locking hook system to attach the product to a table edge. The Munchkins product also has a single locked upright seat position, a three-point harness system, and a ratcheting under body attachment system for connecting the seat to a table edge. The Inglesina product also has a locked upright seating position, a three-point harness, and a ratcheting under body attachment system. The Phil and Ted product similarly has a locked upright seat position and a three-point restraint system for the seat. The Zooper product has a four-point harness system, a fabric crotch pad, and a spring loaded locking clamp for connecting the chair to a table edge.
These types of alternative booster seats attach to the table with the seat or chair suspended from the table's edge. The child can use the table top or, in some instances, a tray of the product for an eating surface. These products do not eliminate the need for a young infant feeding solution. Thus, a family will still likely have a number of child seat products on hand to accommodate their child as the child grows.